AAS 2015 | Dealing with North Korean Provocations: Regional Military Responses and the Hope for a Diplomatic Solution

In the Korea Economic Institute of America’s (KEI) panel at the 2015 Association for Asian Studies (AAS) annual conference, the panelists discussed the different ways militaries in the region approach North Korean provocations. The changing security dynamics in the region and on the Korean peninsula potentially makes Northeast Asia one of the most fragile areas in the world.

An interesting aspect that came up in the discussion was the difference of opinion on how much China can do, how much individual countries can accomplish, and how much multilateral cooperation is needed to convince North Korea to change its behavior. Dr. Xiaohe Cheng explained that China’s policy toward North Korea will continue to have dual characteristics. Sometimes countries will see Chinese officials or actions seeming more contentious with North Korea; on the other hand, there will still be areas of cooperation and interaction that China will use as encouragement rather that undertaking public displays of disapproval. The panelists all hoped for a diplomatic solution but recognized that North Korea’s actions as viewed by many of the security analysts and personnel in each respective country suggest that preparing for dealing with provocations from a military perspective may be needed.